Inuyasha
by kestrelcadiz
Summary: Basically a novelisation of the anime series. Great for anyone who hasn't seen or read the manga.
1. Down the well

**Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or storyline used in this story. All credit to Rumiko Takahashi. I would like to stress that this is a novelisation of an existing manga/anime (I first began writing it for a friend who doesn't like manga/anime but loves the storyline).**

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**Down the well**

"Shikon no wha-?" asked Kagome.

"Shikon no Tama, my girl! The Jewel of Four Souls!" said Grandpa. He held up a marble on a keychain with a grin.

"You don't actually think tourists are going to buy these dumb keychains, do you? They don't even look like jewels."

"These are not just keychains! That crystal there at the end is a replica of an ancient jewel which-" He was interrupted by a jingling noise as Buyo, the cat, reached up and tapped the keychain. Kagome moved it away. The cat followed, reaching up to bat at it occasionally. He crouched ready to pounce on it.

"Ahem."

Kagome looked up. Grandpa was scowling at her.

"As I was saying, that crystal is a replica of an ancient jewel which-" At that moment Buyo pounced for the jewel and missed only to roll onto his back and try to catch it.

"An ancient jewel which-"

"Hey! You remember it's my birthday tomorrow, right?" burst Kagome. Grandpa paused for a moment then laughed.

"I planned to wait another day but..."

"So you did get something! Hand it over." With a smile Grandpa handed her a box all wrapped up. She opened it quickly and inside was something that had a surprising resemblance to a hand shaped prune. Grandpa grinned with enthusiasm. Kagome was mortified.

"That, my dear, is an authentic, mummified hand of a water imp, which-"

"Here Buyo, eat."

"Waaahhhh! That's an antique!" Buyo proceeded to take the antique and ran to eat it in peace.

Replica this, authentic that. Here everything has a story.

My family have been the caretakers to this shrine for generations. And Grandpa devotes all his time and energy to discovering every myth, legend and story about everything we own and a few things we don't.

"These particular pickles are absolutely full of history!" Grandpa began at dinner.

"Not half as full as you are." Kagome replied getting a snigger from Sota, her younger brother.

The thousand year old Tree of Ages.

The legend of the Hidden Well.

I've been surrounded by stories all my life and never believed a word of it.

Well, until today. My fifteenth birthday.

* * *

"I'm leaving!" Kagome called out from the doorway. She was in her school uniform, a dark green skirt, white shirt and red scarf. Her long black hair tumbled loose down her back.

"I'll see you later, honey." Her Mum called from somewhere deep in the house. With a smile Kagome closed the door. It was a beautiful day. The sun was bright and warm and there was not a cloud in sight. If she was lucky, she might even get a gift from her friends! Maybe they could even go to the movies!

Around their shrine there was a large paved area and some carefully maintained gardens. Far from the main shrine was the Tree of Ages, which had been standing for generations. It was always there guarding over the family. It was there through celebrations and tragedy and radiated a kind of quiet understanding.

Kagome stopped in front of it. There was a strange scratch on the trunk she had never noticed before. Almost like some sort of weapon had hit it. There was a noise behind her. She turned.

Opposite the tree was the dry well also known as the Hidden Well. It was surrounded by a small shrine so from the outside you couldn't see it. The door was open and outside stood Sota, staring in.

"Hey, what are you-?" Kagome called. Sota jumped.

"Uh, nothing." He replied and turned. In his hand was a bowl full of cat food. She walked towards him.

"You know you're not supposed to play in there."

"I'm not! It's the cat!"

"Did he go down to the well?"

"I don't know where else he could be. Buyo!" Kagome and Sota stepped inside the dark shrine.

"So go down and get him."

"But why do I gotta be the one?"

"Because you're the one that's looking for him."

He sat down and didn't answer. Kagome sighed and looked down to the well. It was sealed on top and some dried herbs lay on top to ward off evil spirits. It really looked quite creepy.

There was a skittering noise near the well.

"Wah! Something's down there!" cried Sota. He jumped behind Kagome.

"Yeah, the cat." Kagome sighed and walked down the stairs. She would help out this time but next time Sota had to go down himself.

There was that noise again. But something was strange. The noise was coming from inside the well. That was impossible! It was completely sealed off. There were all sorts of legends about this well. They used to chuck the bones of monsters down there before it was sealed. What if they were still there? That scratching noise again!

Something touched her leg!

"Aaahhhh!" screamed Kagome.

"Wahhhh! Buyo?" cried Sota falling back.

She looked down to see Buyo, the cat. He was purring. She picked him up.

"You make fun of me cause I'm scared? And then you're all aaahhhh!"

"Look who's talking Mr 'Why do I have to go?'" she glared at him. Sota stared over her shoulder to the well. The scratching noise started again.

Suddenly, light shone bright from under the seal. With a crash the well's cover burst into pieces!

"Sis! Watch out!"

There was a rush of wind and light from the well behind her. Kagome froze. There were hands on her shoulders. She dropped Buyo. Something was pulling her back!

Her legs hit the edge of the well and she fell back. She heard Sota calling her name. He ran to the door and was calling for Grandpa.

She was falling!

The top of the well was far above her now!

There were still hands grasping her shoulders. One hand touched her face and turned her from the top.

She gasped.

It was some sort of monster! It had the head and body of a woman and eight arms. Huge fangs filled its mouth. But from the waist down was the huge skeleton of a spine it looked like trailing behind them as they fell.

The monster spoke.

"Ah, to be alive once more! I can feel my strength returning!" Its voice was guttural. As it spoke flesh grew back on the skeleton. It was a centipede! A centipede monster!

It held her face in its hands.

"You have it, don't you? Give it to me!" Its eyes opened wide and it licked her face. Kagome felt blood rise to her face. She struggled and freed her arms.

"What are you doing! Let go!" She hit the centipede monster and pushed it away.

There was an odd ringing in her ears like a windchime.

Bright pinkish white light shone from her hand. The centipede cringed away. Its arm broke off still grasping her own arm. It fell back into the darkness and out of sight.

"Wretched girl! I must have the sacred jewel!" its voice echoed.

"The sacred jewel?" Kagome murmured. Hadn't Grandpa said something about a jewel the day before? The darkness around her was absolute. Only the pinkish light from her hand remained and that was fading. Was she still falling? The well couldn't be this deep.

A bluish light filtered down from above. There was a dirt floor floating slowly to her feet. She fell to her knees. She was at the bottom of the well.

Kagome looked up. There was the top only a few feet above her head. How could she have been falling for so long if the well was only a few feet deep?

"I guess I must have fallen, in the well." Maybe I bumped my head or...she turned to look at the arm which lay on the ground beside her. A shiver went up her spine.

"Maybe not! Either way," she stood up. " Hey Sota! Get Grandpa!" There was no answer. He had probably run off at the first sign of trouble. She listened for him but could only hear birds.

Some ivy grew on the sides of the well. Kagome started to climb.


	2. The boy dressed in red

**The boy dressed in red**

Kagome pulled herself over the edge of the well. Something was definitely wrong. The shrine was gone. Around the well was a forest. In the distance she could see the hills that rimmed the edge of modern urban sprawl. But where was the city? There was nothing but trees!

"I could be wrong but-" she spoke out loud to calm her nerves. "Toto, I think we're not in Tokyo anymore."

She stood up and walked from the well. Birds chattered oblivious to her presence.

"Mom! Grandpa!" There were no features to the forest. Shrubs and undergrowth blocked her view. Looking back she couldn't even see the well now. All the trees looked the same! "Sota! Buyo!" maybe it was some sort of prank and her family would spring out with a camera yelling 'Happy Birthday!'

Still just trees. It was like the shrine had never existed. Wait! That tree over there! Could it be...?

"The Sacred Tree!" It was identical to the one on their property. Maybe she wasn't as lost as she thought.

Kagome ran through the undergrowth to the tree. Just a few more steps. But something wasn't right. She turned around the last bush and stopped, staring. Slumped against the tree was a boy dressed all in red. He looked maybe seventeen but his clothes were strange and old fashioned.

There was an arrow in his chest.

The boy was dead. He must be dead. But his face was so peaceful, as if he was sleeping. It was strange.

He had very long hair, longer than her own. It was pale silver in colour, like starlight. It shifted in the light breeze, shimmering in the morning sun. And on top of his head were...

"Dog ears?" Kagome exclaimed. Things were getting weird now. She knew any other time she would have already left to look for some way to get back but there was something about the boy that was strangely compelling. Kagome walked forwards until she was directly in front of him.

He had small white ears, just like a dog.

"I think I want to touch them." She reached forwards hesitantly, then poked them. Then pinched them. Then wiggled them. Sure enough, they seemed to be real and attached to his head, not just some piece of cosplay.

Her arms fell to her sides.

"Well, now that I have that out of my system." She sighed. She felt strange, as if she had met him before but she knew she hadn't. She would have remembered someone with dog ears.

"What are you doing! Get away from there!" a man shouted at her.

Kagome froze.

There was a strange snapping noise and suddenly the air was full of arrows! She screamed and cowered against the boy's chest. Five pierced the tree around her and the boy. She looked up. Five strange men had them surrounded. Each wore old fashioned clothes and wielded a bow.

Every arrow was trailed on her heart.


	3. Look Clever!

**Look Clever!**

"You didn't have to tie me up you know!" she called to the villagers. Around her were the strangest people she had ever seen, including that old lady she and her friends had seen once at Wacdnalds who was dressed as a bumblebee. They were all dressed in feudal era peasant clothing like on some historical tv show.

Looking around the village wasn't much more help. The houses, or more accurately huts, were all small and made of wood slightly raised above the ground. Behind the huts were rice fields and forests behind those right off into the distance.

The people had all gathered around her suspiciously. Even now they were whispering, some even glaring at her. She hadn't even done anything!

"Look at those clothes, so revealing-"

"-a foreigner maybe-"

"-interrupting rice planting season-"

"-come to spy on us-"

"-is it war-"

"-maybe a kitsune-"

"-nothing but a poor village-"

"-shape changing foxes are trickier-"

"-waste of-"

"Make way for High Priestess Kaede!" With that the muttering stopped and the villagers turned respectfully to the priestess.

The High Priestess Kaede was old. Her hair was grey, her skin wrinkled. She was dressed in a white jacket and long red hakama. In her hand was a powerful looking longbow and she didn't seem afraid to use it. Her right eye had a patch over it but in the left was a look full of dignity. She was impressive.

"Now what?" Kagome sighed to herself with an inward groan. The Priestess marched over to her and stood frowning. Kagome noticed she had been carrying a small drawstring bag in one hand. After handing the bow to a nearby man, she reached deep into the bag. Kagome leaned forwards curiously.

"Demon, be gone!" With a sudden sweep the Priestess dusted her in salt and crushed herbs. Kagome flinched away. She threw more of the dust, this time directly into her face.

"Hey! Hey! I'm not a demon OK?" She cried out in exasperation. The Priestess paused in the middle of another sweep.

"Are ye not? Then why were ye found in the forest of Inuyasha?" the Priestess asked. At this the man leaned.

"She could be a spy from another village." It was perhaps the loudest whisper Kagome had ever heard. She sat up straight with an indignant expression at the accusation.

"In that case, she would be a fool. Who would invade such a poor village as ours?" Her mouth opened to say more but she paused, looking straight at Kagome. Concentration crossed her face, and then her eye widened in disbelief. Kagome swallowed.

"Let me have a good look at ye." The Priestess told her as she approached. A hand slipped under her chin and with surprising strength the Priestess turned her head from side to side, that same look of concentration on her face.

"Look clever, girl, or be a half-wit." The old woman's tone was conversational but Kagome felt she had somehow been insulted. Her assessment was quick.

"It's there! Though I know not why." Kagome blinked, perplexed by the whole exchange.

* * *

The High Priestess Kaede lived in a small hut at the edge of the village. Steps cut into the steep hill beside it which lead to the shrine dedicated to the local deity and the martyr Kikyo who had died fifty years previously to defend the village from an attack by demons. Kaede, her sister had then become the village Priestess.

Outside the full moon shone on the cold hilltops the village nestled between. Some dog howled a lonely song. Inside the hut Kaede leaned over a bubbling pot that was producing a delicious aroma. Carefully she fed the central fire with wood to keep the heat up. Kagome sat to one side lost in thought. With a shock, she remembered that it was her birthday. So much had happened.

"Stew?" Kaede asked, offering a bowl. Kagome took it gratefully.

"Wow! That looks great! Real food!" She took a sip.

"Bear us no ill will child, for though I now see ye mean us no harm, in these troubled times of war no stranger may be welcomed among us without mute mistrust." Kaede explained.

"We really aren't in Tokyo anymore, are we?" she mused aloud.

" "Tokyo"...? Never heard of it. Is that where your people are from?"

"Uh, yeah! So I really should get going..." Kagome spoke with a confident smile. _Though I have no idea how to get back of course._

Kaede sat in silence, regarding her. Eventually she moved.

"Tell me, have you heard of our last Priestess, the mighty Kikyo?" Kagome shook her head. "It is a sad tale but, methinks, essential if you are to truly understand-" The loud toll of bells interrupted her. Kaede ran out, Kagome right behind.

The men were all running. Clouds of dust rose from rubble that once had been homes and barns. There was a crash as yet another building collapsed. Some piece of timber shot into the sky, trailing dust.

"It's a monster!" cried one man.

Suddenly rearing above them was the same monster from in the well! Its many legs clicked horribly together as it swayed. Seven grotesque arms protruded from its woman shaped torso, one a stump from where Kagome struck it. Its deformed mouth was opened wide to grasp the body of a dead horse. It promptly threw this prize to their feet. Kaede raised an arm to push her back.

"It's that thing again!" Kagome cried. She shivered in fear and revulsion.

"Give me the Sacred Jewel!" It gurgled. Flexing low and quick it shot forwards, missing Kagome by inches. The next sweep knocked her to the ground. The centipede monster obviously had difficulty making tight corners and reared up once more to start the attack.

Kaede turned to Kagome. "It said Sacred Jewel. Are ye its kill?" She asked urgently.

"Uh, I have no idea! I mean I've heard of the Jewel but I-"

Bowmen tried to shoot it down with massive bows but the powerful arrows bounced off the centipede's hard shell. It turned irritably to them and began to spin fast. It bowled into them sending them flying.

Kagome stood watching the destruction it was causing. It was horrifying, and all her fault. This monster was after her and her alone. Two men ran up to defend Kaede.

"Spears! Arrows! Nothing works!" One told her in a desperate voice. Kaede nodded.

"We must lure it to the dry well." Kaede said.

"A dry well?" Kagome asked. Kaede turned to her.

"The well in the forest of Inuyasha."

"Which way to the forest? It's where that light's shining, right?" She broke into a run across the rice fields leaving them behind. The centipede followed closely. "I'll draw it away!" she called back.

"How is it she can see lights that cannot be seen in the forest of Inuyasha?" The men of the village all gathered around her with their bows and spears. One led the horses.

"Lady Kaede, the demon followed her."

"Yes, now we must follow the demon. She cannot fight it alone."


End file.
